


Paradise

by Bossanovababy24



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-07
Updated: 2015-06-07
Packaged: 2018-04-03 08:55:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4094764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bossanovababy24/pseuds/Bossanovababy24
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Melinda May was relaxing at the beach, having finally taken some holiday time. Phil Coulson wanted her back.</p>
<p>Spoilers for s2 finale - just a small one-shot between May and Coulson.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Paradise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ddagent](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ddagent/gifts).



**_Paphos, Cyprus_ **

 

It was midday and the sun was at its peak, beating down gloriously on the beach. People wandered the golden sands, either watching their kids from afar as they played in the shallow water of the sea or trying themselves to unwind and catch the abundance of sun.

Melinda May would never fall into that first category but she sure as hell could fit into the latter. Her sunbed was pulled far back, away from the buzz of the families and couples who were enjoying the peak of their holiday time. She had been here for 6 days. 6 wonderful days. She knew it was dangerous, being in the same location for more than 2 days but right now she really did not care.

An open book lay on the sand beside her (some sort of romance… or was it a mystery? She always forgot as soon as the book hit the sand) and an empty glass stood on the plastic table to her right. If it wasn’t for the second sunbed attached to that plastic table, she could call it paradise.

As it was, men saw that empty sunbed as an opportunity to introduce themselves, try to persuade her into the sea (some even daring to hint at skinny dipping) and otherwise bothering her perfect solitude. Her stony silence- and sometimes headlock- always left them retreating,

She felt a shadow pass over her and bit back a sigh. Another day, another disturbance.

This one was noisy, landing down hard on the sunbed beside her and letting out what sounded like a long suffering sigh. There was a pause, a beat of silence where Melinda waited for the onslaught of questions and sleaze and offers of drinks and to rub sun lotion on her back.

“I’ve gotta hand it to you, May, you sure can pick ‘em.”

Her body tensed for a split second before relaxing once more. She didn’t reply, one thought racing through her previously peaceful mind: _That bastard._

“I mean, set back from the open… no steep cliffs to be seen so no vantage points, clear view both ways and out to sea. Very tricky for threats to sneak up on you. I’m impressed.”

“How did you find me?” Melinda asked bluntly. Her eyes remained closed, maybe if she couldn’t see him, she could pass this off as figment, a small part of her psyche that for some reason desired him to be sitting right next to her. On second thoughts, it might be better (less questions that way) just to acknowledge that, despite everything, Phil Coulson was here.

“Well I _am_ Director of S.H.I.E.L.D, I’m resourceful.”

“Did Andrew tell you?”

She knew she shouldn’t have told Andrew anything. _Emergencies only_ she had explicitly stated.

“Actually no, but thanks for that vote of confidence,” Phil’s voice sounded light, teasing. Just how it should always be, “I distinctly remember you mentioning that you always wanted to visit Cyprus back on our undercover operation in Stockholm when we-“

“- don’t you dare mention Stockholm.” Now Melinda turned her head towards him, opening her eyes.

Phil was smiling, that crooked smile he always gave when he knew he was successfully winding her up. Not that she categorised all of his smiles… not at all.

“Well anyway, once I had a vague idea of country it was easy enough to track you down. Local hospitals reporting bruising and a sudden increase on neck braces for men aged between 20 and 55. You never did like company.”

 “You sound so sure that you are the exception,” Melinda retorted, turning back and facing the sun once more, “I actually picked this place because they do good martinis.”

She could hear more shifting and another sigh. He was getting comfortable, he should _not_ be getting comfortable. This did not bode well for her.

“How is your arm?” She cared enough to make small talk.

“Oh it’s fine thanks for asking,” Phil responded cheerfully, “they’ve actually nearly finished with a prototype new hand. Metal of course.”

“’They’?”

“Maria Hill on behalf of Stark Industries. Not that Tony knows about it… he still thinks I’m dead.”

“When he finds out, he will kill you all over again.” The ghost of a smile passed over Melinda’s face.

“I’ll handle that when it comes to it,” Phil replied, “anyway I’m really hoping it will come with rockets, like Mike’s.”

She shook her head slightly but did not respond. The horror of seeing him that day, being dragged into the makeshift medical area where Simmons had based herself, blood flowing freely down his arm and leaving a trail along the corridor. His pale face. Loss of blood, Simmons had said shakily, possibility of infection-

Melinda looked over at Phil again. His eyes were trained on his sling and she bit back a small laugh. Paying more attention to him, he certainly wasn’t dressed for holiday. Grey suit, striped tie, navy sling and black polished shoes. Perfectly groomed as usual, but Melinda could spot the beads of sweat on his brow. He certainly wasn’t here for relaxation on the beach, which brought her to the crucial question, the one that would end her (already too short) holiday and shatter the peace and quiet that she had been enjoying.

“Why are you here?”

He glanced over at her, his eyes drinking her in from her feet right up to her face. She didn’t feel at all self-conscious under his gaze. He tried to smile again but Melinda could see that it was more of a grimace, clearly not wanting to answer the question.

“Ward.” He finally uttered, his eyes now fixed on her own.

“I can handle Ward.”

“I have no doubt that you can.”

“You know I intend to kill him, right?” Melinda asked. She didn’t need his approval, merely his acceptance. She would not let Ward get away, not again.

“After what he did to Fitz, to Skye, to Morse?… hell I’ll hand you the gun myself,” he responded easily, batting away her declaration as if she had said she was intending to take up knitting, “but we’ve been picking up signals – just faint conversations here and there, a lot of hearsay too- Ward is talking to others.”

Melinda sat up and removed her sunglasses.

“Who is he talking to? Who would possibly still listen to him?”

“HYDRA,” Phil looked away briefly, across the sea, “it looks like they are regrouping, rearing their ugly head again, only this time-“

“- Ward is that ugly head.” Melinda finished.

“It appears so.”

“So you came here to drag me back and help with this?” Some anger and a little bit of hurt entrenched itself in Melinda. She had wanted to get away from this and here Phil was, dragging her back in to help sort out the problems… like a toy brought out of the box on whim.

Phil shook his head and directed his gaze back to Melinda. There was something raw and open in his eyes and just like that, Melinda felt the anger slowly dissipate.

“No, I came here because after everything… all the secrets and the lies that have torn us both apart… I can’t do this, direct S.H.I.E.L.D., singlehandedly any more. Both literally and metaphorically,” he shook his sling with a tired smile, “I need you to come back because… I can’t do this without you.”

Melinda felt her heart race. She couldn’t break away from his gaze, the sincerity of his statement pinning her down and leaving her unable to rebuke, to make a sly comment, to do anything than utter his name so quietly that she couldn’t be sure it had come from her.

“… Phil?”

He must have seen something then, something in her usually stoic expression that encouraged him further. He reached out and gently took one of her hands in his own. He squeezed it tightly.

“Despite everything, you are the person I trust the most Melinda,” he said softly, “I need you to be my second hand.”

Melinda curled her fingers over his own, squeezing back. She had certainly not been expecting this when he first showed up. Hoped, perhaps, in the darkest recesses of her mind… but hearing it from his own lips?

“Okay.”

“Okay?” Phil looked dumbfounded, his mouth opening and shutting a few times as if he expected her to put up more of a fight, “that’s it? Okay?”

“Yeah, that’s it.” Melinda allowed a small smile and laid back down on the sunbed, reluctantly letting go of his hand.

“Right,” she heard Phil say hastily. Her eyes were trained once more on the sea, “Right well… I guess that also answers the question of boundaries.”

Melinda raised an eyebrow and smirked.

“For now.” She replied before closing her eyes once more and basking in the sun.

She could feel him smile at her response and for a few moments everything was silent, everything was good.

“You know, I like you in that bikini,” Phil suddenly said, “I always did like that colour.”

“I’d take it as a compliment but I know you’re thinking about Lola right now.”

He laughed but didn’t respond. Melinda heard rustling and the soft _swish_ of fabric as he must have pulled his tie off. Another creak and then soft breathing. She felt a smile threaten once more.

Now _this_ was paradise.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first piece I've written for AoS - no beta so any mistakes made, please do let me know. I apologise profusely in advance! 
> 
> This is for ddagent, who I both love and HATE for getting me into this fandom! Hope you like it, ddagent - if you don't then I'll be sure to make May put a bullet in Ward in the next one!


End file.
